In his fourth season as the starting quarterback for Palos Verdes High, Ryan Rakowski’s superpower is knowing what to do no matter the situation. It’s as if he has eyes in the back of his head. His ability to improvise instantly when he senses a defender closing in is the best magic act in the South Bay.
The Nevada-bound senior passed for two touchdowns and ran for three more on Thursday night in a 35-20 victory over Carson before a standing-room-only crowd of nearly 2,000 at Carson. Palos Verdes is 3-0 with impressive wins over Gardena Serra and now Carson, the City Section Open Division title favorite.
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“He does a great job keeping plays alive,” Carson coach William Lowe said of Rakowski.
Rakowski had touchdown runs of 19, three and one yard. He added touchdown passes of 25 and 41 yards. People may be skeptical about his size (listed as 6 feet), but so many quarterbacks in college and the NFL have proven their worth with skills, instincts and intelligence.
“Awareness and knowing the game in and out,” Rakowski said of his strengths.
Carson worked all week on having a “spy” assigned to stop Rakowski whenever he decided to take off out of the pocket. He rushed for 70 yards in 10 carries and passed for 156 yards, connecting on all five of his passes in the second half.
It helps to have a dynamic, special athlete in junior receiver Jalen Flowers, who contributed one touchdown on a short pass, slipping away and outrunning helpless defenders. He also returned a punt 46 yards and made a spectacular catch. It makes you forget playing safety is his primary position. He’s been playing varsity since his freshman season, and is much faster this season, having grown into his body and is making Trent Mosley-like plays.
Carson’s strategy was to double-cover him, but Flowers said he was prepared. “I feel I have to see that every week from here on out,” he said.
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As for Rakowski, Flowers said, “Extending plays is what he does best.”
The first half saw the stars come through for both teams as Palos Verdes took a 14-13 lead. The quarterbacks kept running, leaving defenders unable to stop them. Chris Fields III guided the Colts on an 80-yard opening drive, scoring on a one-yard run. Rakowski came back to deliver a five-yard pass to Flowers, who turned it into a 25-yard touchdown play. Rakowski followed with a 19-yard touchdown run and Fields added a seven-yard touchdown run.
Carson is clearly the best in the City Section but wanted to prove it could compete against a top Southern Section team. For a half, the Colts (2-1) did just that. Then Palos Verdes started to grind away in the second half, with Weston Reis doing some power running to support Rakowski and Flowers.
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Fields rushed for 88 yards and three touchdowns but was sacked twice in the second half. He passed for 77 yards.
Palos Verdes’ lone disappointment was a leg injury to standout lineman Logan Lara that required the game to be delayed while paramedics were called.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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